The West Midlands venues and locations, which have appeared in film and on television, will be showcased as part of a new, multi-year, global campaign by national tourism agency VisitBritain.

'Starring GREAT Britain’ will be promoted across VisitBritain’s major inbound markets, including USA, Australia, France, Germany and the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) countries, and will highlight destinations – including the West Midlands – which have been used in filming and seen-on-screen.

The campaign capitalises on the growing travel trend known as ‘set jetting’ – the phenomenon of tourists visiting locations they have seen in films and on television. It aims to inspire more visitors to discover more and stay longer, driving visitor spend into local areas.

To celebrate the new campaign, a new tourist guide displaying the West Midlands’ well-known and under-the-radar filming locations has been launched.

The 24-page brochure provides national and international visitors to the region with a handy overview of the West Midlands backdrops, which have graced the big and small screen. These include the Black Country Living Museum in Dudley (Peaky Blinders), Grand Central in Birmingham (Mission Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One) and Coventry Cathedral (This Town; Nativity!).

The guide also includes destination profiles, fun facts and ideas for tourists on what to experience and where to eat, stay and party to live like the ultimate Hollywood A-Lister.

The guide’s launch comes as fans eagerly await the new feature film of Peaky Blinders, the global smash hit BBC drama, set in Birmingham. The series was named the world’s most popular Netflix release in a 2021 study. It has also been credited with an increase in domestic and international visitors to the West Midlands, as well as special walking tours, a dance theatre event and escape rooms.

The West Midlands will host the first-ever World Screen Tourism Summit – SET-JET 25 – at the ICC, Birmingham. Taking place on Friday 21 November, the event will showcase UK and international best practice in the growing market for ‘set jetting’. The Summit will feature expert speakers from around the world on film tourism marketing, destination branding and visitor management.

To read the new brochure ‘A Guide to Filming Locations in the West Midlands’, visit: visitbirmingham.com